Bob Marley’s Birthday Celebrated By Musicians Around the World in Viral Video

In celebration of what would have been Bob Marley’s 66th birthday,
band and foundation Playing for Change has teamed up with Marley’s
estate to release a video that will premiere today on the musician’s
Facebook Page.

The video — which will be featured on Playing For Change – Songs Around The World, Vol. 2 CD and DVD due out in May — contains a performance from The Wailers’s final European tour, as well as a clikc track utilizing Marley’s vocals. Marley’s son, Stephen, is also in the video. Keep an eye on Marley’s Facebook Page for its debut.

“This is the third Bob Marley song that we have done,” says Playing For Change founder Mark Johnson. The release of this particular video just happens to coincide with Marley’s birthday (February 6).

“Bob
Marley is one of the greatest musicians in the world and has the great
ability to inspire people in every race, culture and economic status.
[The song is a] great way to inspire people to come together,” he says.

If
you’re not familiar with Playing For Change, it’s a band and foundation
created by Mark Johnson, who spent four years traveling and filming
musicians from around the world (local and street musicians alike).

In 2008, he released a cover of the song “Stand By Me.”
That video has garnered close to 30 million YouTube views, and it
helped lead to a PBS documentary and CD series. The Playing For Change
band was also born (and will soon be playing at Jazz Fest in New
Orleans), as well as The Playing For Change Foundation, which seeks to
support music education.

The Marley video is a little different
than previous Playing For Change pieces; instead of just using local
musicians and established (living) artists to recreate the jam, Johnson
incorporated a performance from Marley’s final tour, which set the tone
and tempo for the rest of the performers — including Marley’s son.

This
video, like all of Playing For Change’s previous work, was filmed
outdoors to echo the experience of seeing a particularly effective
street performer. “You can walk by someone and they can change your
life,” Johnson says.

The disc containing this song will be
released in May 2011, and, like all other albums, the proceeds will go
toward building music schools in places like Mali, Rwanda and South
Africa.

Playing For Change makes an effort — especially with this
album — to go into poorer communities in order to find performers, which
serves a dual purpose: 1) To show the world the beauty and talent
inherent in even the poorest of areas; and 2) To forge communities where
music schools can later be built.

Johnson says that the
foundation is also working on a video program (still in its infancy)
that connects the schools, so kids can share in music-making, and those
who donate to those schools can see the fruits of their charity.

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